What is the TomTom Trucker 600?
The TomTom Trucker 600 is a Global Positioning System, that can be securely mounted on the dashboard of your truck. This GPS is systemically and specifically designed to fit the needs of us truckers in the ever-changing trucking industry. On top of that, what differentiates it to most GPS available today is its inclusion and tracking of critical information. Needless to say, it is essential for us truck drivers to navigate to our path safely. This includes road height, overpass height, and even commercial carrying limits.
This integrated feature allows me to not only have the liberty to plan my most preferred route but also do so without the fear of being unintentionally guided through paths that are hazardous for my trucks or downright restricted. Simply put, the trucker GPS is preventing us away from restricted areas for our trucks. It instead presents a sub optimal pathway for our large commercial vehicles to pass through.
This is fundamentally achieved by the custom software of the TomTom Company. Their technology allows us truckers to input the specific weight and overall size of our respective vehicles. This may also include the type of cargo we may currently carry. In this way, the TomTom Trucker 600 would automatically pick a route in our travel. It will pick the route presenting us the least number of potential problems. These problems include the likes of low tunnels and overpasses to residential neighborhoods where there is a restriction to such heavy load to some of us truckers. Furthermore, there are also options to route around toll roads. The means of including certain check-in spots and refueling stations to rest along the way as well.
TomTom Trucker 600: Most Noteworthy Features
Connectivity
This version of the TomTom Trucker device may also connect via Bluetooth to our smart phone which is handy for us truckers. Furthermore, we can utilize the MyDrive application to plan a specific route for us to follow in our journey. This will help us truckers in avoiding unnecessary hazards and apparent traffic. The device may also transmit and confirm proposed routes to the customer or management for our commercial truck drivers to go.
Additionally, the particular route is programmable at a central office or at the very point of our departure. Upon the start of the trip, the route will automatically download to the GPS. This functionality dramatically helps us to seamlessly drive and coordinate our routes to our respective customers or managers in advance. It enables them to have a live and accurate estimation of my driving status. And they can do so without bothering us truck drivers every now and then during our trip.
Updates
The TomTom Trucker 600 comes with traffic updates and lifetime maps included within the device’s price point. This noteworthy inclusion ensures that the TomTom is aware of the major changes in particular roads or traffic pattern shifts over time. It may also promptly re-route to more desirable routes in the instances of any adverse weather or unfortunate road accidents.
This will greatly help eliminate much of the guesswork that comes with route planning. In addition, giving us the chance in avoiding getting lost due to obstacles we may encounter such as road construction and more.
As such, TomTom Trucker 600 is superior to the conventional GPS alternatives commercially available today. Ahead from the ones requiring an SD card or any other manual offline methods for updating. It also stands above the GPS applications that one may install within our very own smartphones. This is because they aren’t optimized to account for the sort of problems we truckers may most likely encounter. Or, at the very least, be concerned about.
Versatility
The makers of this tool heavily advertise it to aid us truckers in our travels. Still, the TomTom Trucker 600 is not necessarily limited to being just a commercial device exclusive for the trucking industry. The software architecture of the device is based on the high standards of the previous TomTom models. The options for us truckers are but primarily set as extra upgrades to the base system itself. Basically, the device is mainly an excellent GPS device that can be used by everyone. However, it is slightly nudged to the direction of truckers.
The GPS system is a few screen taps away from being as good for use as any vehicle available today. This makes it ideal for operators or owners who may want to use it as their personal GPS. Even RV owners who make a living of towing smaller vehicles may see the device excellent as well. You can store up to four vehicles in this device. This enables the TomTom Trucker 600 to quickly shift between stored vehicle types and plan its optimal routes accordingly.
Installation
The trucker GPS device is quite easy to set up and securely install. It has a straightforward snap and mount system which enables us truckers to quickly, easily, and comfortably placed anywhere we may see fit. That said, the ideal position for it is still the dashboard of our truck. A fundamental mounting setup is also provided alongside the system itself. The click and go setup is extremely easy to set up. It gives off a fixed mounting point that will not necessarily jostle around or even come loose over time.
Additionally, considering that it has already been a standard for a long time now, on top of numerous mount options being widely available in the market today, granting third-party mounting options are also very easy to find. The GPS system has six inches of touchscreen. It comes with variable settings for brightness and even has an automatic night dimming function. This feature greatly helps me in my travel when the dark of days’ hits.
The onboard battery will last up about two hours or so. We can also promptly charge it using a MicroUSB connector. However, it will be better for the system if a permanent connection will serve it for a better use. It comes with a 10V DC cable that we can hardwire. In addition to this, our trucker requires to have an electrical skill in hard-wiring to pull it off properly.
We also have the option of expanding the 16GB internal memory through the use of a separate memory card. It can easily fit in its integrated MicroSD card slot, which can accommodate up to an impressive 128GB of storage. As a result, our truckers can install apps or music to entertain us while heading to our destination or stops.
POI Search and Voice Control
Admittedly, the menu can appear as a bit overwhelming the very first time that we use it. But a little bit of exploring can solve that issue then and there. Most of us will find its search function most helpful. This is because it prompts our truckers to input a particular address or name. After that, the device would then promptly find and present ready for our users. This is extremely convenient as it prevents the need for us to dig deeper within its menu system. The device has a default setting of searching Near Me, but we may comfortably change it to search over the whole given map, in a city, along the planned route, or even near the final destination we have chosen. Furthermore, it may search via latitude and longitude for more precise searching.
The GPS device also has optional voice control functionality, but we must activate it for each command we’ll issue. The features isn’t always on by default. Whenever we press the dedicated button for the functionality, the voice prompt will accordingly say I’m listening. It will then display the most common commands on its screen. This added function may take a few practices to get right, but once our trucker does, it will be genuinely beneficial and convenient as it eliminates the need to press several buttons – all we have to do is speak.
Conclusion
All in all, the TomTom Trucker 600 offers considerable advantages over the standard GPS systems and GPS software found on smartphones. Primarily, this focuses on the device’s capability to identify and understand typical road hazards. It may also appear relevant for our truckers such as load and height restrictions. This excellently helps us drivers to avoid the most common of problems caused by the standard GPS units available in the market today. This is most especially true when it comes to the unintentional routing of trucks on roads that are way too small, narrow, or with insufficient authorization for large vehicles to pass through.
With all that said, the fact that the system does not have any sort of integrated Wi-Fi connection can be a bit inconvenient. It is solely dependent on our smart phone and a dedicated application to work seamlessly. However, its great asset is that the software can be rightfully programmed using a desktop computer or a phone device. After so, we can do an instant update. We just have to make sure that there is a connection between the device in question and a phone.
If we can look past its most glaring flaw of being too reliant towards other devices to function at its best, the TomTom trucker 600 can indeed be an excellent device. Without a doubt, at its best, this particular device is an excellent option for those who require a trustworthy truck GPS system.